Let’s Talk! Freebies

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession.

This weeks question: Do you take advantage of Freebies? or Do you think Freebies are a good selling tool for authors and publishers?

OMG YES! YES! YES! and please oh please stop tweeting the links to them! lol

I just can’t help myself with those freebies, plus they’re on the Kindle so out of sight….I’m also bad to a lesser degree with the .99 Kindle deals.

I really shouldn’t download even one more book, free or not, considering how much I already have to read but I’ve found a lot of great authors and series that way. There is no way I would have paid full price but I will always take a chance on the freebie. The only downside is that I haven’t had time to read all of them so they’re just stacking up.

I don’t really know how much it benefits authors. On one hand, as I said, I try a lot of books/authors I wouldn’t have otherwise because of the freebie. If I love it then I buy the next book release or continue with a series so that’s a win for the author but they’re not making any money on that particular book. I guess if the freebie/.99 goes over well then it helps the book ranking and gets them more attention thereby selling more books when the price is raised?? I’m guessing that’s the theory or else why do it?

It’s an addiction that I don’t see myself stopping anytime soon and I hope that it benefits authors as well.

Let’s Talk! Distractions

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession.

This weeks question: When you get on the computer, what sites distracts you from working on your blog?

There is only site that distracts me from blogging.

I’m pretty sure that If I would get my a** off Twitter I could be the one to achieve world peace, cure cancer or at least get my house clean and pay some bills. It’s a huge time suck for me but I love it so it stays.

Not a website but my 2nd biggest blogger distraction is this guy:



That’s my baby boy… Figment (also pictured on my sidebar). He hates when he isn’t THE center of attention and especially hates when I blog or read. He’s either sprawled across my keyboard or drooling on my iPad.

For the most part it’s blogging that is the distracting thing that keeps me from everything else! It seems that I’m in an endless distraction loop. lol

Let’s Talk! Social Media

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession.

This weeks question: What social media sites/tools do you frequently use? Which ones do you avoid and why?

Twitter, Twitter and Twitter. I love Twitter! It feels spontaneous and fun. For the most part personal stuff and rants are kept to a minimum. I can talk to several people at once about different things. Twitter makes me happy.

I’m also finding myself using Twitter more than Google reader to follow blogs. I get a wider sampling of posts that way without necessarily following each blog.

The downside – that is really an upside if you’re an author – is that I succumb to impulse buying with book deals that people tweet way more than I do when visiting a post. *shakes fist* at the .99 book deal.

Sure there are a few negative twitter frenzies but I just scroll right on past them. I admit, I used to get involved but nothing good can come of that so I move on now.

I avoid Facebook. I just don’t get it. And I think people are way more personal and hostile on there than Twitter. In my experience anyway. It also feels like a giant chain letter sometimes rather than a conversation. But hey! I know a lot of people who hate Twitter – so to each his own!

I have Google+ but I don’t see very many people using it other than to post links. I visit on occasion but not very regularly.

Let’s Talk! Procrastination…

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession.

This weeks question:  Procrastination: does it rule your life? Or are you more of the prepared/scheduled type?

I don’t procrastinate a lot but I am a fly by the seat of my pants kind of person. The more I try to schedule my life or blogging the more I resist doing what I’m supposed to. I feel pressured and freak out.

I’m a post-it note planner. I jot a few notes down and then it’s stuck in my head. This system drives my husband nuts because to him there is no order (he’s VERY organized) but it makes sense to me even though post-it notes are stuck everywhere around my house.

I’m envious of people who use google docs to plan their blogs months in advance but that’s just not me. If it’s not on a piece of paper in front of me then I forget it.

How about you? Do you put things off until the last minute? Or are you super organized?

Let’s Talk! Review Requests

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession.

This weeks question: Reviewers: How do you handle the less than ideal review requests? You know, the ones that have clearly not read your blog or your review policy. Also, what’s the worst review request you’ve ever received?

In general I don’t get too worked up about authors who haven’t read my policy or that I can tell haven’t read my blog. Anyone who blatantly is ignoring my stated policy gets deleted without a response. An unsolicited book attachment gets an immediate delete. I won’t read the request any further. Sorry, but I have no idea who you are and I’m no opening myself up to viruses.

I try to keep in mind that not all new authors know proper review request etiquette. When I started blogging I made make a few faux pas when contacting authors so I try not to judge too harshly. We learn by doing and we’re going to make a few mistakes and hopefully learn/improve as we go.

Having said that my peeves are mass blogger requests with at least 50-100 other bloggers cc’d, sending me a book in a genre I clearly don’t read, personal sob stories, epic – long emails or two sentence emails that don’t tell me anything about the book.

I love a quick note that introduces the author, a quick synopsis that summarizes the book with links to all relevant sites. That’s all. Any more than that takes up too much time. Also when the author is professional like that I am more inclined to ask them to guest post even if it’s a book I’m not interested but think my followers would be.

The worst requests?

I’ve had doozies. The worst one was from an author that bragged that her book was full of spelling and grammatical errors. She said that proved she was pushing boundaries and not following old outdated publishing rules. If I recall correctly it was a paranormal with bondage and dreams and a whole bunch of other wacky things. 

I also had a request that sort of insulted my reviews and reading tastes then asked me to read his book. O_O

The other common one is the “I know you don’t read this type of book but you will LOVE mine.”

Sorry….that never works on me. I have taken a chance on a few authors that followed the general guidelines of being quick to the point and polite but that’s rare.

I can’t accept many requests these days but I’m still honored and shocked that an author would offer me their books for review.

Let’s Talk: Books? What books? I didn’t buy any books…

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession.

This weeks question: Do you hide your book purchases from your significant other/parents/children/pet/old lady down the street? Share some good smuggling stories!

I have to say - I am one lucky lady, my husband not only doesn’t care how many books I buy but he’s an enabler. He bought me wall to wall bookshelves from Ikea (& wants to buy more). He also has a thing for singed stuff so whenever he sees books signed or that are collectables/limited editions he grabs them. He’s the one who found me signed copies of both Catching Fire and Mockingjay.

Now the one thing that has him questioning my book purchases is the .99 kindle deal. After Thanksgiving I bought SO MANY Kindle books in one week. He saw the Visa bill and the first page and a half was…..

.99
.99
2.99
.99
.99
3.99
2.99
.99
etc.….

He wasn’t upset and actually thought someone hacked our credit card lol but he was like…why did you buy so many books? So basically a dozen $20 Amazon purchases are good, overflowing bookshelves, boxes of books on the floor are ok but too many .99 book downloads and that raises red flags!

These days it’s usually me that puts a stop to my book purchases – my hubby wouldn’t mind at all.

Let’s Talk: Animalistic

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession.

This weeks question: If you could be any animal (real or mythical), what would it be, and why? Get creative here!

It would have to be a wolf/werewolf. A wolf only if I could live on protected land and a werewolf only if I’m a wolf from Kelley Armstrong's wolves from her Women of the Otherworld series.

I always thought of it as a painful transformation and difficult way of life (which I’m sure it would be) but the way Armstrong writes about pack life and the relationship between Clay & Elena is so beautiful that I think it would be worth it. When you read about her shifters running through the woods and chasing each other, you almost feel like you’re there, running through woods. (Goodreads)


The other creature I’m intrigued by is the shape shifting griffin love interest, Dimitri, from Angie Fox’s Demon Slayer series. I can’t say I would want to be one – but maybe married to one?? Dimitri is sexy and extremely loyal plus he can fly! (Goodreads)

I used to think I wanted to be a vampire but maybe I’ve read too many books with the broody/angsty variety. It seems that living 100’s of years makes you cranky so….never mind lol

This question kind of stumped me. What other kind of mythical creatures or real life animals would you want to be?

Let’s Talk: Book Influences

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession.

This weeks question: Do reviews often influence your book choices, or are you someone who doesn’t read reviews until after reading the book?

Yes & no. Reviews may get me interested in a book but they are never the only reason I pick up a book. I’m much more influenced by a tweet frenzy which leads to impulse buying. (Not necessarily reading mind you & I’m trying to get better about that)

I do read or skim reviews most of the time before reading any book but it’s not the deciding factor. I have a few friends who know my reading tastes so well that I will read a book if they tell me too – no questions asked.

A tad off topic but….it’s often the negative reviews that influence me the most. I could read 100 OMG BEST BOOK EVER reviews and still not be convinced but one negative review that gives me a clearer picture into the pros and cons of a book will sway me to read it.

I find the OMG reviews – and yes, I do write a few – set my expectations too high and doom the book once I read it.

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I wanted to let you know about The Cost of Book Blogging survey that In the Midnight Garden is compiling. The results should be fascinating & sobering! The deadline is January 20th. The more bloggers that participate the better the results.

I don’t keep accurate figures on how much I spend but it’s A LOT so I’m really looking forward to hearing what everyone else has to say.

Let’s Talk! Book Series

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession.

What are your thoughts on series? How many books in a series is too many? What authors do you think handle longer series well, as opposed to ones who seem to stretch it out less successfully?

If you had asked me this question before I started blogging I would have said I wished that all my favorite series would go on forever! Even if the quality went downhill, because I still like seeing what my favorite characters were up to.

These days I’m reading dozens of series and I know this sounds cynical but I don’t have time to waste on stories that aren’t moving forward or making an emotional impact on me.

My other problem is that so many series started sounding similar to me and they run together so I can’t keep track. Particularly with the PNR - tortured hero meets virginal yet spunky love of his life - genre.

I cut out quite a few series last year when I realized I didn’t remember what was going on from the last book or I started getting irritated by the lack of progress with the plot. I also don’t have time for series re-reads anymore to refresh. The Sookie Stackhouse series is one I cut loose. I probably read the first four books a dozen times but I can’t seem to drum up enough enthusiasm to see what Sookie is up to these days.

I actively seek out stand alones now and very rarely start a new series these days. I enjoy companion novels too. You get to revisit the world and  characters but move on to a new story. Stephanie Perkins (Anna and the French Kiss / Lola and the Boy Next Door) and Miranda Kenneally (Catching Jordan / Stealing Parker) seem to be two authors who are successfully leading this trend.

I’m also noticing a switch to two book series. This seems promising because the second book in many trilogies that I’ve read is usually a let down, padded with filler to keep the drama going until the conclusion in the third book.

The one series that I hear only gets better is Kresely Cole’s Immortals after Dark series. I have only read the first book. The series is at book #13 and going strong and I haven’t heard anyone complain – the exact opposite – people love the series even more now. So yay! for the authors who get it right.

I think in general a series should go on as long as it needs to for the story to be told but make sure you’re telling that story. A few that have gotten it right and ended on a high note for me are: Ann Aguirre’s five book Sirantha Jax series, Stacey Kade’s Ghost & the Goth trilogy, Jeri Smith-Ready’s five book WVMP series, Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld series – thirteen books total.

What are your thoughts?

Let’s Talk! Fall/Winter TV shows

Let’s Talk is a fun new meme to discuss an little bit of this & a little bit of that (not always bookish) hosted by Smash Attack Reads and A Book Obsession

What TV shows are you most excited for this Fall/Winter, and why? Yes, we encourage the pimping of hot men on TV. There is certainly no shortage of that this season!

I rarely watch TV these days which is weird because I was TV OBSESSED not even 5 years ago. Like from the second I woke up until I fell asleep at night. I needed a dual tuner DVR plus one in my bedroom to record everything I watched. 

Then a tragic event happened….my DVR broke mid TV season and half a season 6 of LOST was well….lost. You can’t watch LOST out of order so I had to wait until it was available on DVD (in the days before streaming…) I ended up not caring thereby breaking my TV addiction. I never even finished watching the series. I don’t know how it ended.

So anyway... there really aren’t any fall/winter shows I’m looking forward to. I’m going to cheat - the show I’m looking forward to seeing has already aired BUT due to a dispute between Dish and AMC I didn’t get to see it. BREAKING BAD – Season 5. 

I love this show!!! I think it’s the best show on television right now. It’s the last season, split into two parts and I didn’t get to see the first half of the final season!!! It’s not on anywhere and I’m trying desperately to avoid spoilers. But maybe it will come out in some form this fall/winter?

How about you? What are you looking forward to?

AMC - Breaking Bad: Website